counting me out

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

"Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is an early-20th century Tin Pan Alley song which became the unofficial anthem of baseball although neither of its authors had attended a game prior to writing the song. The song is traditionally sung during the seventh-inning stretch of a baseball game, in spite of being written from the perspective of someone not at a game. Fans are encouraged to sing along.

History of the song

The words were written in 1908 by Jack Norworth, who while riding a subway train, was inspired by a sign that said "Baseball Today — Polo Grounds". The words were set to music by Albert Von Tilzer, (Norworth and Von Tilzer finally saw their first Major League Baseball games 32 and 20 years later, respectively). The song was first sung by Norworth's wife Nora Bayes and popularized by various vaudeville acts. Norworth wrote an alternative version of the song in 1927. (Norworth and Bayes were famous for writing and performing such smash hits as "Shine On, Harvest Moon.")

Contrary to some sources, Billy Murray, although a fan of baseball in general and the New York Giants in particular, never recorded a version of the song. One of the well-known quartets, whose sessions frequently included Murray, did record the song, but without Murray, leading to some confusion in some of the record catalogues.

Lyrics

Below are the two versions side by side for comparison:

1908 Version
Katie Casey was baseball mad,
Had the fever and had it bad.
Just to root for the home town crew,
Ev'ry sou1
Katie blew.
On a Saturday her young beau
Called to see if she'd like to go
To see a show, but Miss Kate said "No,
I'll tell you what you can do:"

1927 Version
Nelly Kelly loved baseball games,
Knew the players, knew all their names.
You could see her there ev'ry day,
Shout "Hurray"
When they'd play.
Her boyfriend by the name of Joe
Said, "To Coney Isle, dear, let's go",
Then Nelly started to fret and pout,
And to him, I heard her shout:

[Chorus]

Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowds;
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don't care if I never get back.
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don't win, it's a shame.
For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,
At the old ball game.

Katie Casey saw all the games,
Knew the players by their first names.
Told the umpire he was wrong,
All along,
Good and strong.
When the score was just two to two,
Katie Casey knew what to do,
Just to cheer up the boys she knew,
She made the gang sing this song:

Nelly Kelly was sure some fan,
She would root just like any man,
Told the umpire he was wrong,
All along,
Good and strong.
When the score was just two to two,
Nelly Kelly knew what to do,
Just to cheer up the boys she knew,
She made the gang sing this song:

[repeat Chorus]

1 The term "sou", now obscure, was at the time common slang for a low-denomination coin. Carly Simon's version, produced for Ken Burns' 1994 documentary on baseball, reads "Ev'ry cent / Katie spent".

In the I Love Lucy episode "Lucy and Harpo Marx", Harpo plays "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" on his harp.

In the Marx Brothers comedy, A Night at the Opera, Harpo and Chico, in sabotaging the opera Il Trovatore sneak a rendition of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" within the Overture. When the Overture comes to the song, they, in the orchestra pit, feign a game of baseball, while Groucho appears as a stadium vendor calling out, in a mixed metaphor, "PEANUTS, PEANUTS! GETCHER RED HOT PEANUTS!!"

Among those famously associated with the song was Hall of FamesportscasterHarry Caray, who began singing at games in Comiskey Park for the Chicago White Sox from the early 1970s to 1981, then in Wrigley Field for the Chicago Cubs from 1982 through 1997. Caray's tradition of leading the crowd in singing the song began when White Sox owner Bill Veeck sneaked a public address microphone into Caray's broadcast booth, so that the crowd could hear Caray's boundless enthusiasm and marginal musical talents — something that previously only his broadcast colleagues were privy to.
The original idea of the leading the crowd had originated some years earlier, when WMAQ radio producer/broadcaster Jay Scott noticed Harry, and others, singing the song when Nancy Faust would play in on the organ. Scott suggested the sing-along it to WMAQ radio brass, but the idea did not catch on, and was ridiculed by Caray himself. After being ordered to sing by Veeck, Caray began leading the crowd, leaning out the front window of his booth and swinging his microphone in time with the music, like a conductor's baton. When Caray left Sox broadcasts to join the WGN team broadcasting Cubs games, the singing tradition went with him. Late in his career, when Caray missed a number of games due to a stroke, "guest conductors" did the honors; after Caray's death, the guest-conductor tradition has become a part of the Cubs tradition, with different celebrities doing the activities each game, whether it is part of Chicago sports, actors, musicians, news anchors, or fans.

Coincidentally, the year the song was written (1908) is the last year the Cubs won the World Series — after beating out Norworth's Giants for the league championship (See Merkle's Boner).

When sung at baseball games, a variety of alternative lines are sung. Most of these center on the line "Let me root, root root for the home team;" in most Major League ballparks, the actual name of the home team is substituted for the words "home team."

If the team name contains one syllable, the word "team" can be appended to the team name, as in "Reds team," as sung in Cincinnati, though in recent years the Reds have taken to using "Redlegs" to fill this spot. Similarly, other two-syllable nicknames are also used, such as "Cubbies" at Chicago Cubs games, "Bravos" at Atlanta Braves games, or "Twinkies" at Minnesota Twins games. Some teams replace the words "Let me" with either "So it's", "For it's", "So we'll", "With a," or "'Cause it's."

After the September 11, 2001 attacks, many teams replaced the song with God Bless America during the seventh inning stretch, or played the song after God Bless America. This practice largely has ceased in recent years, though God Bless America is retained for patriotic holidays such as Independence Day and Memorial Day. In some instances it is reserved for a specific day of the week, such as a Sunday.

If a game goes to the 14th inning at Wrigley Field, they will sing the song again.

During the April 17 2008 Colorado Rockies vs. San Diego Padres 22 inning game, the song was played at the 14th Inning Stretch and once again at the PETCO Park unprecedented 21st Inning Stretch.

In 2008, MLB celebrated the 100th anniversary of the lyrics with various promotional activities.

The United States Postal Service commemorated the 100th anniversary of the song with a 42-cent postage stamp, issued June 16, 2008 in Washington, D.C. during President George W. Bush's first "Tee-ball on the South Lawn of the White House All-Star Game."

Recordings of the song

The song (or at least its chorus) has been recorded or cited countless times in the 100 years since it was written. The original music and 1908 lyrics of the song are now in the public domain, but the copyright to the revised 1927 lyrics remains in effect. It has been used as an instrumental underscore or introduction to many films or skits having to do with baseball.

In 1957, jazz pianists (and baseball fans) André Previn and Russ Freeman recorded Double Play! for Contemporary Records with drummer Shelly Manne. The original song titles invoke baseball imagery, such as "Called on Account of Rain," "In the Cellar Blues" and the title track. The first track on the album is a jazz version of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game."

In the early 70's, the melody of the first few lines of the chorus were appropriated as the intro to the song "J.J. to Brenda to Mark", from The Electric Company.

In 1985, Kidsongs released a home video that contained a rendition of the song. In this rendition, the chorus as above was sung, followed by a new verse to the same music as the chorus, with the following lyrics: "All I need is just one chance / I could hit a home run / There isn't anyone else I need / Maybe I'll go down in history / And it's root root root for the home team / Here comes fortune and fame / Cuz I know that I'll be the star / At the old ball game"

One recording artist in the early 1990s released a version of the song that simply skipped the first two words, but kept the tune the same, thus highlighting the simplicity of the lyrics, and the fact that most of its words are of single syllables: "Out to the ball game take me / Out to the crowd buy me / Some peanuts and Cracker Jack, I don't /" etc. This recording was included in a traveling exhibit of baseball art, called Diamonds Are Forever.

In the mid-1990s, a Major League Baseball ad campaign featured versions of the song performed by musicians of several different genres. An alternative rock version by the Goo Goo Dolls was also recorded.

In 2003, the Japanese punk band Nicotine recorded a cover of the song (with the verses) entitled "Take Me Out to the Ball Game 2003" and released it as a single.

For the 2007 season, indie rock group The Hold Steady recorded a version of the song to be played at Minnesota Twins home games, substituting new lyrics to make it Twins focused. This came about after Hold Steady lead singer (and life-long Twins fan) Craig Finn did an interview with a Minneapolis/St. Paul Star Tribune sports writer.

Stories about the song

In 1988, for the 80th anniversary of the song and the 100th anniversary of the poem Casey at the Bat, Sports Illustrated writer Frank Deford constructed a fanciful story (later expanded to book form) which posited Katie Casey as being the daughter of the famous slugger from the poem.

In 2006, Jim Burke authored and illustrated a children's book version of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame".

In 2008, Andy Strasberg, Bob Thompson and Tim Wiles (from the Baseball Hall of Fame) wrote a comprehensive book on the history of the song, Baseball's Greatest Hit: The Story of 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game'. The book, published by Hal Leonard Books, included a CD with 16 different recordings of the song from various points in time, ranging from a 1908 recording by Fred Lambert, to a seventh-inning-stretch recording by Harry Caray.